[DMFW]

It's really hard to remember exactly what was my first taste of written science fiction but it would have been in the early 70's at the age of nine or ten I think, and was very likely one of the Hugh Walters series of juvenile space adventures which systematically covered the solar system in a series of alliteratively titled adventures with names like "Spaceship to Saturn", "Journey to Jupiter", "Nearly Neptune" etc...

I only remember the details of one which I was sure should have been called "Voyage to Venus" but for some reason (having just done a quick internet search) I find was actually called "Expedition Venus". In this story, an unmanned probe has recovered the spores of a voracious grey mould from the Venusian atmosphere which are accidentally released on Earth. The mould grows uncontrollably killing everything it touches and a mission has to be mounted to try to find a natural predator that can be brought back to Earth to kill it.

Haven't thought about these books for more than thirty years until this thread made me cast my mind back (and I didn't even know who wrote them until I did my Google serach just now) but I do remember enjoying them greatly...

Anyone else recall these books?

John Christopher's "Tripods" trilogy was also amongst my very early reading with "The City of Gold and Lead" leaving a particularly strong impression on me.

I know I also read a collection of Ray Bradbury short stories called "R is for Rocket" when I was far too young for them and they half scared me to death. Put me off Bradbury for many years although he eventually became one of my favourite authors!

Juvenile Heinlein came a bit later and then Issac Asimov when I was in my teens. After that I was hooked...